the town by means of applause. Format #2 In 1953, the television format was changed to viewers writing to the show, and asking about a date with a type of person, or to go on a date to a special event. Broadcast history Blind Date started on the stage of the Hollywood Theatre in Sioux Falls, South Dakota, as G.I. Blind Date, a radio show designed to entertain servicemen at the Army Radio Technical Training School in town. The first show was broadcast on KELO radio in January 1943. G.I. Blind Date was created by Joe Floyd, Cliff Gill and Vera Thomson as a between-movie entertainment feature. Seeing its success, Floyd peddled the idea around to other markets, eventually selling it to NBC radio where it first aired July 8, 1943, hosted by Arlene Francis. The radio show grew into a television show. This version originally aired on ABC from May 5, 1949, to September 20, 1951, moved to NBC from June 7 to July 15, 1952, then ran on DuMont (originally as Your Big Moment) from May 19 to September 15, 1953. The ABC version aired Fridays at 8:30pm EST during the start of the 1949-50 TV season, and Thursdays at 9:30pm EST during the 1950–51 season. Arlene Francis was the host of the ABC and NBC versions, and had hosted the radio version since 1943. Melvyn Douglas became host when the show moved to DuMont, but was replaced after the third show by Jan Murray. Episode status One episode with Francis from 1950 is held among collectors, while the August 25, 1953, show with Murray is held by the Paley Center for Media. Critical reception Media critic Jack Gould wrote in The New York Times, "Blind Date does not seem very real." He explained that the show had a "forced and contrived nature", with the participants appearing to have been rehearsed. See also List of programs broadcast by the DuMont Television Network List of surviving DuMont Television Network broadcasts References Bibliography David Weinstein, The Forgotten Network: DuMont and the Birth of American Television (Philadelphia: Temple University Press, 2004) Alex McNeil, Total Television, Fourth edition (New York: Penguin Books, 1996) External links DuMont historical website 1949 American television series debuts 1953 American television series endings 1940s American radio programs 1940s American game shows 1950s American game shows American radio game shows Black-and-white American television shows DuMont Television Network original